Whale Watching Off Hervey Bay 6

Call me Ishmael

Not quite a tale of terror on the high seas, but shades of Herman Melville as I recount a day spent on a boat in Hervey Bay.
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Maryborough Unplanned

Maryborough unplanned

I’m notorious for not researching destinations when I travel. This is why my photographs from Maryborough are not typical tourist snaps.
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Dumbo

Bridge views

How jet lag took me on an unexpected adventure across the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City
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Nancy, Melon And Kylie At Port Phillip Estate Winery

When does a girl become a woman?

Behind the scenes with seven amazing women, not girls, on a weekend getaway in Melbourne.
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Artistic Endeavours

Artistic endeavours

I'm curled up in bed with an empty teacup beside me watching Lethal Weapon. The movie could be seen as a cultural touch stone, the first in a good-cop versus bad-drug-dealer franchise featuring slide guitar, gunfire, explosions and 1980s profanity. Am I drawing a long bow? Maybe. The rest of the day is easier to…
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Dscf4094

Cocktails and free-range cows

End of day The hotel bar has toffee walls framed by wide timber architraves. Punters sit in deep tub chairs upholstered in leather and pale gold chintz. Or there are sofas with cushions in caramel, coffee and beige; fat, v-necked, kept in shape with plumping and karate. We drink whiskey and mock tails and nibble on…
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Dscf4253

Pushing boundaries

"This probably sounds terrible mum, but it tastes just like the Spaghetti Bolognese from The Gap Tavern," The Ballerina said to me tonight as she twirled piles of pasta round her fork and into her mouth. "Not terrible at all my darling," I responded, secretly chalking up a maternal win as I finally witnessed my…
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West Melbourne

Melbourne

Roger Federer has just won the Australian Tennis Open, his 18th grand slam victory and his first tournament since taking six months off to recover from a knee injury. He's 35-years-old. Ancient. Hearts bleed for his opponent, Raphael Nadal, who displayed more courage in the game and grace in defeat than the entire new crop of men's hopefuls…
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Mt Barney

Almost climbing Mt Barney

Easter had come and gone but a searing afternoon sun refused to concede to autumn at the Mt Alford farm. It was hot. My listless family abandoned any thoughts of tree planting and instead made a picnic lunch, turning leftovers into sandwiches and fishing floating soft drinks from eskies, before climbing into an air-conditioned car to explore the…
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Riverside

Bangkok basics – what I learned about navigation once I ditched the limo

A conference tag-along breaks free of the organised tour to explore Bangkok alone.
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